Terp Volleyball Hosts ACC Home-Opener

Sept. 28, 2006

Terp volleyball looks to rebound this weekend as they hold their ACC home-opener against Virginia Tech and Virginia at the Comcast Center Pavilion. The Terrapins (7-4, 0-2 ACC) face off against the Hokies (9-4, 3-1 ACC) on Friday at 7 p.m., then against the Cavaliers (10-3, 3-1 ACC) on Saturday at 5 p.m.

The matches can be followed on Gametracker by visiting www.umterps.com. Saturday's match with Virginia can also be heard on WMUC-FM 88.1 FM radio, www.wmucsports.com.

Parking is recommended in Lot 9B to avoid traffic from another event in the arena. There is an alternative entrance to campus off Route 1.

Last Time Out

Maryland traveled to the state of Florida last weekend to open its ACC schedule (Sept. 22-24), dropping matches against Florida State and Miami. The Terps fell 3-0 (30-12, 30-28, 30-24) to Florida State, and 3-0 (30-24, 30-27, 30-14) to Miami.

In the contest against the Hurricanes, redshirt sophomore Mary Beth Brown tallied a team-high 11 kills in the match, with Maggie Schmelzle adding eight kills. Katie Usher had five kills for the Terps, while Beth Gillming recorded 12 digs for the squad.

In the matchup with Florida State, the Terps were held to a .163 hitting percentage and four blocks in the match. Mary Beth Brown notched the team-high again of eight kills against the Seminoles.

A Look at the Terps

After eleven matches, the Terps are registering a .220 hitting percentage (13.10 kpg) and are keeping their opponents to .211. The Terrapins average 3.15 blocks per game, with over 132 total blocks, ranking 19th in the NCAA in that category. Senior setter Teryn Papp leads the team with 5.84 assists, while sophomore Tedi Doucet has 4.74 assists.

Meredith Doyle boasts a team-high .265 hitting percentage (1.85 kpg) with 72 kills, as Mary Beth Brown (2.33 kpg) has 98 kills for a .242 hitting percentage. Junior captain Beth Gillming (1.90 kpg) has 80 kills, with sophomore Maggie Schmelzle registering a .195 hitting percentage with 70 kills.

Junior outside hitter Jade Brown (.260) holds team-highs of 3.72 kills per game and 104 digs (2.89 dpg) and returns on the court this weekend for the Terps.

Cincinnati-natives Beth Gillming and Maggie Schmelzle are tied with 98 digs each for a 2.29 dpg, with Jade Brown holding a 2.89 average. Overall, the Terps have a 11.74 average on the season.

Maryland is one of two ACC schools that play two Top-20 opponents as part of its early season schedule. The Terps dropped a 3-1 (29-31, 30-26, 23-30, 22-30) contest to then-No. 17 Indiana (Sept. 8), and fell 3-0 against then-No. 3 UCLA (22-30, 23-30, 23-30) at the Hilton Garden Inn Greenbelt Invitational in the Comcast Center.

The Terps face six teams this season that advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2005.

Terrapin Jade Brown and Cavalier Sarah Kirkwood shared ACC Player of the Week honors for the week of September 11, 2006.

Building Blocks

Maryland is No. 1 in the ACC in blocks (3.15) as well as No. 19 in the NCAA, with Doyle and Usher contributing a combined 109 blocks to date. Doyle stands third in the ACC with a 1.41 bpg, while Usher has a 1.32 bpg average for fourth in the league.

The Terps set a new school-record of 22 total blocks in the 3-1 win over Long Island University, in the Hilton Garden Inn Greenbelt Invitational in College Park (Sept. 15).

Five Terrapins have notched 20 or more blocks to date this season. Aside from Doyle (55) and Usher (54), outside hitters Mary Beth Brown (44), Jade Brown (24), and Beth Gillming (24) have helped the Terps' defense.

About Virginia Tech

The Hokies come into the weekend with a 9-4 mark after falling to Virginia, 3-1 (30-28, 29-31, 30-21, 30-24) at Memorial Gym in Charlottesville Tuesday night, snapping a six-game winning streak. Virginia Tech opened its ACC season with a 3-0 win over Virginia, followed by three-game sweeps over North Carolina and NC State.

Freshman outside hitter Taylor Parrish (.242) leads Virginia Tech with 180 kills (3.75 kpg), helping the team to a .190 hitting percentage. Parrish was named ACC Player of the Week on August 28, 2006, after the Hokies had victories over East Carolina (3-1), Furman (3-1) and William & Mary (3-0).

Senior Katie Esbrook leads with a team-high .332 hitting percentage (2.33 kpg) and 56 blocks (1.17 bpg), while sophomore Sarah Munoz has 161 kills (3.43 kpg/.131 hp).

Virginia Tech's Amanda Cloyd is second in the ACC in digs, averaging 5.04 per game, as the team registers 16.73 digs per game.

The Terps hold a 6-0 series lead over the Hokies. Maryland swept Virginia Tech twice last season.

The Hokies are 1-2 on the road this season, 6-0 in Blacksburg, Va.

Chris Riley (Jacksonville '93) is in his first year as head coach with the Hokies.

About Virginia

After a Thursday contest against Boston College, the Cavaliers come to College Park for a Saturday 5 p.m. meeting. Virginia (10-3, 3-1 ACC) has won three of its most recent matches, with wins over Virginia Tech (3-1), North Carolina (3-1) and NC State (3-1), yet dropped its ACC-opener against the Hokies (3-1).

The Cavaliers opened the season with a loss against then-No. 11 Tennessee then defeated their next six opponents. After a 3-0 loss to Michigan, the Cavaliers topped Marquette before they began their ACC schedule against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Va.

Virginia holds a .223 hitting percentage (15.84 kpg), with Katie Oakes (3.62 kpg) and Sarah Kirkwood (4.33 kpg) leading with a .299 and .257 hitting percentage, respectively. Oakes also has a team-high 79 blocks (1.76), for seventh in the NCAA, with the team recording 121 blocks (2.95 bpg).

Sarah Kirkwood is ranked third in the nation in service aces (0.83), helping Virginia to an overall 2.29 average per game, while her sister, Emily, has tallied 13.44 assists per game for eighth in the NCAA.

Virginia is 0-3 in away matches, and 6-0 on its home court in Charlottesville this season.

Maryland holds a 32-12 series lead over Virginia, with the Terps winning five of the last seven meetings.

Last season, the Terrapins won 3-2 (30-16, 24-30, 30-26, 26-30, 15-12) in Charlottesville and 3-1 (30-20, 30-32, 30-23, 30-19) in College Park.

Head coach Melissa Aldrich Shelton enters her twelfth season with the Cavaliers, posting a 174-147 (64-94 ACC) career record.

Coming Up

The Terps head to Chestnut Hill, Mass. for a Tuesday night matchup with Boston College (Oct. 3), then return home to face Georgia Tech (0-2 ACC, 8-4) on Friday, Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. The Terps then play Clemson on Sunday, Oct. 8 at 1 p.m. before heading on a four-game road swing to North Carolina.

Players Mentioned

Jade Brown

Mary Beth Brown

Tedi Doucet

Meredith Doyle

Beth Gillming

Teryn Papp

Maggie Schmelzle

Katie Usher

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